File image of Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah© Twitter
Hardik Pandya endured a tough time at the IPL after he was named the captain of the Mumbai Indians replacing Rohit Sharma. Wherever he went, Hardik Pandya was booed by the fans. Mumbai Indians’ lackluster display in the IPL 2024 did not help matters. The five-time champions finished last among the 10 teams to slump to its worst-ever display in the IPL. Hardik Pandya’s India and MI teammate Jasprit Bumrah has now opened up on the issue. On Hardik Pandya being booed and the T20 turnaround, Bumrah had a blunt take.
“You have to take it on your chin. That’s where the inner circle comes in. We, as a team, don’t encourage that, we don’t promote that. We don’t think that’s warranted. We were with him (Hardik), talking to him, if he needed support. Certain things are beyond your control. If it happened, it happened. The narrative just changed, when we won the World Cup. This is part of the journey. It’s us against the world. We will try to give as much support as we can,” Jasprit Bumrah told Indian Express.
“We live in a country that’s driven by emotion. Fans get emotional and players are also emotional. It does affect that you’re an India player and sometimes your own fans are not speaking well of you. But it is the way it is. You’ve got to take it on your chin because how can you go out there and stop people?”
Bumrah also opened up on audience support and its fickleness.
“When I started, I wanted to be praised and people to like me. But then I realised in a couple of years that you cannot please the world. So I thought that if it’s a battle that you cannot win, there’s no point fighting that battle. There are many opinions on social media now so people have to be thick-skinned,” he said.
“What works for me is I don’t take anything seriously. My game and my family, that’s all that matters to me. Today people are praising me, great. Tomorrow they don’t, it doesn’t matter to me.”
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